


as he kissed my fingertips and watched me blush

by PinkPoinsettias



Category: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms, The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
Genre: 5+1 Things, F/M, Fluff, Kissing, Love Confessions, Stress Relief, but except its 3+1 because uhhh oops, only in the last part tho
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-04
Updated: 2020-11-04
Packaged: 2021-03-09 04:47:52
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,918
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27388954
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PinkPoinsettias/pseuds/PinkPoinsettias
Summary: Teasing the queen of Hyrule is one of Link's greatest pastimes, but even Zelda's got him beat in that department sometimes.
Relationships: Link/Zelda (Legend of Zelda)
Comments: 12
Kudos: 108





	as he kissed my fingertips and watched me blush

**Author's Note:**

> wrote this up real quick cause election dread kills a bitch and i need to destress, hope i still have rights after this week lol




“I think you’re beautiful,” Link says one day suddenly unabashedly while on a stroll with her in the gardens.

Zelda’s eyes go wide for just a second before the faintest warmth blooms across her face, and he knows he’s gotten under her skin again.

“Flattery won’t achieve you anything, Link.” she says, quickly refinding her composure. She turns her head to the side (to look at the roses of course), and of course he follows. He loves seeing her embarrassed face, especially when he’s the one to cause it because if a calm disposition and stalwart stoicism had a face, it would be hers. The currently reigning monarch had a duty to lead her people correctly, to give them reassurance in her never-faltering composure, and to be fair, it was working. Zelda is a wonderful queen, if a little uptight sometimes. It was something that the people could definitely see. 

Which is exactly why Link loves to tease her so. Who else is gonna get her to relax? The kingdom of Hyrule may have their own assumptions about her iciness, but that doesn’t mean they’re completely true. But if there was something that the people  _ did _ get right though, it would be her beauty. 

He knows he’s not the first person to call her beautiful, and he certainly knows he won’t be the last, but it’s a different story when the random nobles from far away kingdoms Link’s never heard of decide to saunter into the castle to rattle off meaningless compliments to  _ his _ queen while he has to stand a few feet back (the lack of regard they give him certainly doesn’t help either). Even so, she keeps her composure, accepting their compliments, negotiating trade deals and taxes at the same time they kiss her hand while Link has to keep his own hands firmly behind his back, itching to reach for his blade.

“Hmmm? Why’re you hiding your face from me?” Link asks playfully, getting close to her face, to which she pushes him away, citing that he was much too cheeky today, one or two bashful huffs breaking her façade  _ just _ a little bit. 

_ Ok _ , so maybe he was doing this for his own benefit as well, but oh well. She knows he’s genuine. And knowing that he’s the only person who can see her this way fills his chest with a warmth unimaginable to the entire kingdom of Hyrule.

She shows him a small smile and once again they decide to circle around the garden once more before carefully sliding their hands into one another's. 




Every now and then, the two would take trips together in the name of diplomacy. Link knows that Zelda usually isn’t in favor of traveling in such large parties, much preferring Link’s protection to anyone else's, and much to the chagrin of her council (and to his delight), who worry endlessly over her. 

This time, Link had surprised her by making a detour on their route back to the castle, stopping by Ordon. The harvest festival is in full swing tonight, and even now Link can still remember the look on her face as they rode into town. 

She’s dressed in more simpler attire, shedding her usual jewels for a light dress with flats and hair done in a simple braid that cascades down her back. Link’s in his traditional Ordon clothes as well, and together they look like a regular couple, no legendary destiny or royal titles in sight. 

He notices a larger number of people this year, and doesn’t recognize most of them but Zelda chalks it up to people wanting to visit the birthplace of the Hyrule’s chosen savior.

Seeing all of the people dancing gives him an idea, so he asks her to dance. Before she has any time to think about it, Link quickly grabs her hand, pulling her into the center of the chaos with a yelp (thankfully most of the party goers are too drunk to realize they’ve got the queen of Hyrule dancing with them). The band’s just about to start another song, and he feels her stiffen in his arms a bit, trying to get into some semblance of a proper form.

“Well, I suppose it can’t be too different from a waltz...” 

Suddenly the music starts and Link pulls her into a flurry of quick steps. Zelda gasps quietly, as her form is forgotten as she tries her hardest not to trip over her own feet, making Link smirk. They go a little faster than the crowd, and maybe it’s a little mean, but Link wants to see her struggle a little bit.

Suddenly he’s twirling her and she’s so caught off guard that she’s about to tip the both of them over before he saves them by pulling her into a dip at the last second. They hold the position for a second and a healthy blush blooms on her face from the pressure. 

“Too fast for ya, your highness?” he pokes at her, his country accent revealing itself, before pulling her back up. 

“Quite...” she mutters as she braces for another spin. Link can’t help but let out a hearty chuckle when a ghost of a pout graces her face. 

“Oh? The queen of Hyrule can’t handle a simple ol’ commoner’s dance?” 

“Hmm, well, perhaps I just need to get accustomed,” she says, not taking his bait (or maybe she was unaware there was any in the first place), while periodically taking glances at her feet, trying her best not to step on his toes. “I’ve never done this kind of dance before.” 

That’s one thing he loves about her. She’s completely out of her comfort zone, but she takes it all in stride (though it may be because she hasn’t figured out he’s purposely going faster than he should). 

Eventually, Zelda gets a little more used to the dance, the both of them working up a slight sweat. It’s not quite there, and there’s still a fair bit of stumbling, but he makes sure that she doesn’t hurt herself. She looks up at Link with a small smile of accomplishment on her face that makes his heart squeeze. The song begins to reach its conclusion and he feels her tight grip on his hand lessen a bit.

“Well, I think that went decent— Ah!” 

Suddenly, her sentence is cut off by the feeling of Link’s hands on her waist lifting her up. She lets out an undignified squeal, quickly latching her arms around his neck as he spins her around. The world goes by for a quick second in a blur before he sets her down, laughing all the while. 

“You did that on purpose didn’t you!” she huffs. Her hair is slightly disheveled, so he smooths it back down, tucking a piece behind her ear. At the same time, she runs her hand through his bangs, adjusting it even though it just goes back to its messy form.

“I live to surprise,” he says, beaming at her pouting face.

He’s  _ definitely _ got to take her back next year. 

3.

It's a late night, and Link’s currently sitting in the queen's office, playing around with random knick knacks and paperweights on Zelda's desk while she scribbles away on countless unreadable papers dealing with taxes or something of the like. 

“You should retire to your chambers, Link. You don’t need to wait up for me.” Zelda says, not even sparing a look up at him. Her lantern, which has been burning for hours presumably from the low fuel, is on the verge of flickering out, but there are spare lanterns on the floor next to her desk. Tonight, she's wearing a pair of glasses (which Link thinks make her look very cute). Rarely does he see her with them as he usually doesn’t sit in with her while she’s doing work, and more rarely does she take off her gloves and shoulder pauldrons when working. 

“It feels wrong to go to bed when you’re still working,” he admits. “You’re not even dressed for bed.” Well, he’s not either, but it’s different, okay?

“Well, I’ll do so once I’ve finished.” 

“I’m sure you will.” 

They both go silent again and the sound of scribbling pens fill the room. He’s sitting on a spare chair on her left side (It's a tight fit but he doesn't mind), watching the focused look on her face, zeroing in on the slight fatigue in her eyes. 

Link’s already resigned to his fate of knowing he won’t be able to convince her to go to bed any earlier, so he takes to silently watching her, taking her free hand in his and rubbing absent circles into the back of her hand. She gives his hand a small squeeze before returning back to work. His head’s propped up on the table by his elbow and she doesn’t seem to mind his presence anymore. 

He’s  _ so _ terribly bored. 

Most of the work on her desk could easily have been dropped upon any of the council members, but Link knew Zelda was a meticulous worker, almost wanting to curse the fact that she had no problem in taking on more work. 

He feels the need to press the back of her hand to his lips, so he does, because he’s  _ also _ a meticulous worker, just maybe in a different way. She spares him a quick glance and they lock eyes. Her gaze says she’s wary of his mischief, but Link only returns an innocent look, if somewhat coy. 

Maybe he won't convince her to go to bed, but maybe he can provide a necessary distraction from work.

She returns to her papers and all is calm for a few minutes, so this time he places another kiss on her fingertips and they produce a twitch. He sees her reaction in the way her writing stutters just a little before stabilizing. He does it again. Eventually he flips her hand over, placing a chaste kiss over her pulse point. Zelda gives him a confused look. 

“What are you doing?” she asks, pulling her hand out his grasp, just for him to bring her fingers back to his lips. “I’m almost done actually. It won't take much longer.” She’s stopped writing entirely however, probably in order to steady her words, even though he can still hear the slight raise in her voice.

“Just passing time. Don’t worry about it.” Link drawls casually, although not very convincingly. He knows she’s too tired to tell him to stop so instead, she just pauses before letting out a sigh and turns back to her papers, even as he continues to drop tiny kisses up the length of her free arm. She goes back to scribbling her signature on the pages, refusing to give him the satisfaction of letting him see her embarrassed face.

_ So determined. It's cute,  _ Link muses in his mind.

The length of her brown hair obscures Zelda's face, but the closer Link trails up her arm, the more he can grab a peak at her actually quite flushed face. A teasing smirk crosses his face then.

The handwriting on her page becomes shaky and he presses a soft kiss against her shoulder. He's halfway to the front of his seat as he laces her hands with his. Zelda gives her feather tipped pen a squeeze and lets out a shaky breath.

"You're quite incomprehensible, I hope you know." 

"Hmm." he hums, placing a kiss on her shoulder blade. He goes slower on the way up, trying to get the most out of her reactions.

"I was really trying to finish, Link."

He hums again and another kiss is pressed against her neck this time. It's a little harder then the rest and he can feel her pulse increase and a squeeze on his hand.

"L-Link…" 

He places a smiling kiss on her ear this time, causing her to shiver. Taking his free hand, Link softly cups her face in his hand and tilts it towards him, while frees his other hand to slowly pull the glasses off her face. She complies and it's unlike anyone in the kingdom of Hyrule has ever seen. Too flushed, Zelda doesn't meet his eyes. 

He goes in to meet her where she is, and she shuts her eyes.

A second passes, and instead of a kiss on the lips she feels, it's the feeling of a kiss on the side of her mouth, right on the corner. He pulls back just a bit and Zelda snaps open her eyes. There's a big grin plastered on his face and she sends him the most pointed look she can muster at the moment.

"You're a deviant, you know that?" 

Link only gives her a smile. 

4.

She’s come out to the gardens tonight in secret; the clock has almost certainly rolled past into the next day at this point as the nightly wind brings a chill down Zelda’s spine. The gardens are left mostly unattended at night, aside from the guards patrolling only the outer perimeters, letting the queen easily slip her way into the grounds unnoticed by the rest of the patrol.

Lately, Zelda had been frequenting the gardens late at night. Always a welcome respite from her busy life, it just so happened that the stillness of the night is one of the only times where she can have peace, usually taking the time to just stare up at the sky to ease her mind. As much as everything has been going smoothly, the constant stress from running her kingdom is a lot for one person. 

She’s in a simple nightgown that reaches her ankles now, with a shawl wrapped around her thinly covered shoulders. Her flats thump dully against the stone pathway as she holds a small lantern up through the darkness, casting a dim orange glow on the deep red rose bushes around her. 

Eventually reaching the innermost area of the gardens, Zelda finds someone sitting on her usual bench, and she startles. A rush of adrenaline goes through her veins as she steps back, unable to see any defining features aside from the dark glow of the back of their loose shirt from another lantern next to them. The unknown intruder perks up at the sudden noise and quickly whips around as Zelda perks at the sound of a sword being grabbed. 

They’ve got a dangerous look in their eye and she’s prepared to run and call for the guards, but Zelda instantly recognizes it as Link and calms down, dropping her arm to the floor. He recognizes her too and his expression turns to one of surprise before softening in an instant, dropping the sheath of his blade back down. They both breathe a sigh of relief and she swallows a gulp before coming forward. 

“Good evening, Link.” 

There’s a worried look on his face as his eyebrows scrunch up in slight exasperation, but he smiles anyways and gives her a lazy wave. “Hey.”

Coming forward, she gives an apologetic look of her own and speaks softly. “I’m sorry to scare you like that.” 

Link makes room for her, moving his own lantern and sword onto the floor. She sits down and the marble bench feels cool against her thighs as she places her own lantern down beside her. Zelda notices he isn’t wearing his regular tunic, instead sporting a more casual affair.

“Did I scare you?” he asks. Maybe it’s the lateness of the night, but the both of them speak quietly, as if the wind could blow away their words at any second. 

“A little.” Zelda answers truthfully. Her heart is still racing a little bit even as they talk and frowns a little when Link looks remorseful.

Link gives a deep hum from the base of his throat that sends vibrations throughout Zelda’s body. She notices his expression morphs into something unreadable, his eyes scrunching up, before quickly settling down. Link then brightens a little instead, changing the mood and turning to face her, apparently over the earlier shock. 

“So what’re you doing out here? Isn’t it past your bedtime your majesty?” he jests softly, a small smirk forming. Zelda catches on to his intentions immediately. 

“Well, I’m sure I could say the same thing about you. A knight must need all the rest he could get right?” she returns, meeting his eyes. She plays along, so that they may both soothe their minds, but she’s confident he’d never hurt her.

“Lets just say I’m doing my job then,” he reaches out and takes a long strand of Zelda’s hair and brings it to his lips, and she knows he wants to get a reaction out of her. “I’m protecting the queen tonight.”

She's aware he’s teasing her and she’d usually act a little more scandalized, but tonight everything feels softer, so she just accepts his words without fuss instead. A smattering of red blooms across her face as she listens to Link’s voice and her hands clench against the surface of the bench. His words sound deeper and raspier (maybe it’s the lateness of the night), but there’s no bite to it. It feels so intimate to her; she can feel her face warm up even more as the butterflies in her stomach flap around. 

Before he can tease her any further, she just shuts her eyes and closes the distance between them, leaning her head on his shoulder. She can feel him stiffen in surprise (Zelda’s aware that usually this isn’t how their banter goes), before she relaxes and smiles shyly. They stay in that position, sitting in silence before Link speaks. 

“Is something wrong, Zelda?” 

The use of her first name makes her heart race a little faster and she lets out a breath she doesn’t know she’s been holding in. She hums softly in response. “No, everything’s fine.” 

A few seconds pass by as the nightly wind blows through their hair. He leans into her touch, resting his head on top of hers. 

“Sometimes I wonder,” she whispers so softly that Link can barely hear. “If it’s possible to be blessed by the goddesses so much so that you’ve been able to enter my life.” Her breath hitches and she can feel the tips of her ears warm up. “That I can love you so much.” 

It’s a true confession from her heart this time. She knows she’ll never be the most openly expressive with her feelings, but she feels strangely bold in her words tonight. 

“These moments you’ve given me...” She smiles earnestly against his shoulder, whispering. “I want to cherish them forever… “ 

She didn’t realize just how much tension in her body and in her mind until she feels it all melt away in their touch. 

Zelda goes to put distance between them though, and is surprised to find herself stopped by a strong pair of arms circling her body and pulling her flush against his body. 

Link’s buried his head in her neck, his hair tickling her skin. She can feel him breathe against her as she snakes her arms around his neck in a cautious return. After a prolonged period, she asks him a question.

“Are you alright?“ 

He hums into her skin, but still doesn’t let go of her. 

“Is that why you haven’t let go yet?” 

“J-Just appreciating you s’all.” he murmurs.

_ Was that a stutter?  _ Zelda thinks, but before she can say anything, he places a chaste kiss against her neck, causing goosebumps on her skin, leaving her previous thought almost forgotten.

She also almost forgets they’re outside on a chilly night as they continue to embrace, her body now almost completely warm. A few seconds go by, but Link still doesn’t let go. 

“As much as I love you, is there any reason you haven’t let go?” she tests, a small laugh of confidence in her voice and she notices the arms around her tighten again before softening.

“N-Nothin,” Link stutters again, but Zelda definitely notices it, even as he places another kiss on her shoulder. 

Suddenly, it clicks in her head and a sly grin forms on her face.

“Link,” she starts slowly. “Are you embarrassed right now?”

Link freezes and she knows she’s hit gold. 

“N-Naw, s’just cold is all.” 

“Then I’m sure you’ll have no problem letting go of me right?” 

“If I let go now though, you’ll be all cold.” Link answers with a tiny stammer.

_ His accent’s slipped through again, _ Zelda reflects. He usually speaks formally in the castle, especially around other nobles. The only time she hears him speak in his home accent is when they’re alone.

Sighing, Zelda unwraps her arms from around his neck, and reaches behind her to gently pry his arms from around her waist. Link slowly lets go but leaves his hands resting on her waist, and she pulls back so that she finally can see his features. 

Zelda finds that his face is a surprising shade of red. His eyes don’t meet hers as his eyebrows scrunch up in quite a cute way and his mouth sets into a thin line. Taken aback, her eyes widen.

She doesn’t really realize it, but the butterflies have disappeared as well, leaving behind only a bubbling laughter that rises through her body, and a giggle that escapes her throat. Soon it’s full blown laughter, and she tries her hardest to stifle it with her hand. Link looks at her incredulously but it only makes her laugh harder. 

Link’s usually the one making her blush, giving her compliments and heated kisses that make her skin jump, so who knew it really took so little for him to blush like this? Link may try to act suave and charming in front of her most of the time, with his endless teasing and distracting kisses on her skin, but she realizes it’s small moments like this where she remembers his origins. 

“Hey, what’s so funny?” Link asks with a little bit of a pout. 

Zelda finally calms down enough to answer him, wiping a small tear from her eye.

“Forgive me, I didn’t think you’d react like that when I said those words.” 

“Well, I guess ya really caught me off guard this time ‘round. I’m usually a lot better at keeping a straight face.” Link says sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck with his hand. 

Zelda leans into his touch once more, and this time Link’s prepared. He pulls her close once more, rubbing small circles into the small of her back. They’re both facing each other fully now and she feels fuzzy in her embrace, like if they could stay in that position for the rest of time everything would be alright. 

“Let’s just say I won this round then.” Zelda says, committing to memory her newfound way of teasing for next time. Link looks puzzled and right before he can question her, she cuts him off by reaching up, pulling him down into a kiss. It’s light and chaste and lasts only a little sliver of time, but it still sends shivers down her back all the same as she feels his hands go slack for just a second before giving her waist a squeeze. 

Zelda can’t deny the triumphant feeling in her mind as she sees a flash of dumbfoundedness on Link’s face before he smiles sheepishly. 

“I guess so.” 

She returns his large smile with a small one of her own. 

**Author's Note:**

> no lie tp zelink is like a guilty pleasure to me (skywatd sword zelink is still my fav), they dont have that much of a dynamic in the actual game but i love them cause of what they COULD be, ya know ??? anyways link is a playful country boy and zelda is a little uptight but he loves her anyways and theyre probably kinky as shit in bed


End file.
